Diaby and Emam Ashour angered him: Vicente reveals the secret behind Al-Ittihad's win over Al-Qadisiyah

The German coach led "the Tigers" to their first win in the Roshn League

Al-Ittihad head coach Jens Wissing has revealed the reason behind his side's hard-fought victory over Al-Qadsiah in the Saudi Roshn League.

The Germans edged Al-Qadsiah 1-0 on Friday evening at the Prince Mohammed bin Fahd Stadium in Dammam, in the second round of the Saudi Roshn League.

Speaking at the post-match press conference, as reported by the Saudi newspaper "Asharq Al-Awsat", Wissing said: "It was a difficult match, and there was great pressure on us. Our players performed to the very end with courage and sacrifice."

Asked what drove the win, he replied: "When the spirit is present, the great Al-Ittihad, with its history rich in titles, is present. This is what we always want."

"We are a big team, and we faced one of the best sides in the Kingdom, and we had our say, because everyone gave their all, worked hard and took responsibility, especially after the sending off of our player (Dion Lopy) at the start of the second half," he added.

The German coach then bristled when quizzed on the future of his French winger Moussa Diaby, who is close to a move to Bayer Leverkusen, and on the club's pursuit of Al-Ahly midfielder Emam Ashour.

Wissing batted the questions away: "I will not talk about anything outside the match on this happy night for the Al-Ittihad fans. The matter at Al-Ittihad is not only technical, it is spirit, sacrifice and effort from the players."

Victory over Al-Qadsiah is Al-Ittihad's first this season in the Roshn League, having been held to a 1-1 draw by Al-Khaleej in the opening round. The result lifts them to 4 points, good enough for fourth in the table.